Filmmaker Ben Johnson, Director Kimi Eisele and Composer Vicki Brown fielding questions.
The Patagonia Area Resource Alliance hosted a reception and screening of ‘Rosemont Ours’ in Patagonia on Saturday, May 17. The evening began with a reception at Molly’s Studio Patio followed by a screening of “Rosemont Ours,” a film of modern dance celebrating the plants and animals of the Santa Rita Mountains. Filmmaker Ben Johnson, Director Kimi Eisele and Composer Vicki Brown were on hand to introduce the film and answer questions. “Rosemont Ours” was born in response to the proposed construction of the Rosemont Mine. By “replacing” plants and animals with human beings in reverential and playful ways, the film invited us to consider our role as both stewards and consumers of nature. “Rosemont Ours” can be viewed online: http://rosemontours.com/the-video/
PARA board member, Carolyn Shafer also spoke to the audience providing an update to PARA’s activities, introducing the PARA board and thanking the community for their ongoing support. These are her words:
The real wealth of a community is measured by its inhabitants – human, plant and animal. Our community is very wealthy. Our abundance is the water and air and land that has supported life in this region for many thousands of years. We all need to be involved in protecting our natural resources from further degradation and to regenerate our region’s habitat to better support our biodiversity. And that is the essence of Patagonia Area Resource Alliance’s mission statement.
Many of you here tonight help in this cause through your financial support which is deeply appreciated – some day we won’t have to ask for ongoing support but that day has not yet arrived. Some of us are able to give our time to this work and I’d like to introduce you to our Board and staff: Michael Stabile, Gooch Goodwin, Joe Nitche and not able to be here tonight: Cliff Hirsch, Kati Ballard, Lee Rogers. Our staff: Coordinator Wendy Russell and Social Media Outreach Colin Treiber.
In addition to help fund these efforts, writing comments is also appreciated including those recently submitted on the Wildcat Silver Hermosa drilling proposal. The next step will be the release by the Forest Service of the Final Environmental Assessment and the Draft Decision expected to be made public in June or July. That will open a 45 day Objection Period. If you commented on the Hermosa drilling proposal during a public comment period, you are eligible to participate in the objection process.
PARA is strategically creating alliances with other organizations. It is a gratifying experience to introduce representatives from these organizations to our corner of the cosmos. It is not an understatement to say that they fall in love with our area and value its unique biodiversity and want to assist in protecting the Patagonia Mountains.
-PARA coordinated a Coalition of International, Regional and Local Organizations to comment on the Forest Service Draft Environmental Assessment for the Hermosa drilling proposal. Those organizations are the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthworks, and Sky Island Alliance.
-We hosted the Defenders of Wildlife Southwest Office and legal team for a 2 day tour of proposed mine sites in the Patagonia Mountains.
WMAN conference participants from L: Roy Chavez, Concerned Citizens and Retire Miners Coalition; Wendy Russell, PARA; Aaron Mintzes, Earthworks; Lauren Pagel, Earthworks; and Roger Featherstone, AZ Mining Reform Coalition.
-Through a generous scholarship program, PARA Coordinator Wendy Russell attended the Western Mining Action Network (WMAN) conference on May 9-10, 2014 in Anchorage, Alaska. WMAN provides a critical forum for communities facing mining in the United States and Canada. Their conference provides an excellent venue for information sharing, networking, learning, and strategizing among organizations and individuals working to reduce the negative environmental and social impacts of mining.
-PARA has teamed with Earthworks to develop an independent, peer-reviewed study of the potential impacts of Wildcat Silver’s open pit mine on our groundwater, the potential for acid drainage contamination, heavy metals pollution, as well as the range of issues associated with air pollution, light and noise pollution.
Why do any of us give our time and our money for this cause? I think a quote from scientist David Suzuki summarizes the core motivation for each of us: “There are some things in the world we can’t change–gravity, entropy, the speed of light, and our biological nature that requires clean air, clean water, clean soil, clean energy and biodiversity for our health and well being. Protecting the biosphere should be our highest priority or else we sicken and die.”
